McCaskill Campaign Claims “Gold Standard” for its GOTV Bid

The organizers of Missouri incumbent Senator Claire McCaskill’s re-election campaign think their voter identification and get-out-the-vote effort may be the gold standard for such operations in the 2012 election cycle.
They say the top leaders of the Democratic National Committee think so. They could not be reached Saturday afternoon.
McCaskill campaign manager Adrianne Marsh says since early summer they have made 5.7 million calls to voters and knocked on 1.2 milion Missouri doors in an effort to convince Missourians to vote for McCaskill.
McCaskill’s campaign said they couldn’t actively compare their effort with the GOP because “we don’t have their playbook”, Marsh said matter of factly.
Marsh, however, believes the Missouri Republicans may be dealing with a late start for the fall campaign because of the Republican primary in August.
She also acknowledged that a tough primary, like the Missouri Republican Senate contest this year, could also energize the base.
She conceded, most party’s true believers, “the base”, are already energized by the prospect of a presidential election.
The campaign says they’re hoping to convince Missourians who may be voting for Republican Mitt Romney to split their ticket,casting vote for a Democrat in the Senate campaign.
Many polls are showing that Romney will carry Missouri easily next week.
“That’s not shocking” said Marsh.
Marsh says there is a ticket-splitting tradition in Missouri. She claims many Missourians try to fit the individual to the office, as opposed to voting by party preference.
The McCaskill campaign also says 600 lawyers have signed up and are volunteering to handle election day legal issues that arise.
Kansas City attorney Steve Bough sais 129 lawyers signed up for that duty within the city limits the next week.